Flights heading towards some of Spain’s major airports have been diverted as the country braces for the major Storm Alice to hit its Costa Blanca.
The holiday hot-spot, which is popular among sun-seeking Brits, was placed on high alert for heavy rains and strong winds, with officials warning of ‘extraordinary danger’ on Friday.
Seven flights heading for Alicante-Elche airport were diverted on Friday, airport operator Aena said.
A graphic shared by flight tracking website Flighradar24 showed a number of planes circling around Alicante airport.
The operator also said 12 flights were cancelled on Friday due to the weather warning.
As for Valencia and Murcia’s airports, several flights have already suffered serious delays.
AEMET, Spain’s weather agency, on Thursday issued a red warning for heavy rains in the resort town of Alicante and said it would be in effect from Friday morning.
‘Extraordinary danger. Flooding and flash floods may occur. Follow the advice of civil protection,’ the agency wrote on X.
Rainfall totals could exceed 140 millimetres in 12 hours, especially in Valencia, the weather office said.
Other Mediterranean coastal regions are also expected to be affected, including the neighbouring province of Murcia and the Balearic islands.
AEMET said ‘very heavy and persistent rainfall’ was expected until Monday.
‘Showers may result in local flash flooding in low-lying areas, streams and gullies, so the potential danger level of this situation is high’, the agency added.
The Balearic government said on Thursday it has reinforced emergency services in party island Ibiza after it was placed on an orange alert for rain and storms.
Emergency services on the island of Formentera are also preparing to act quickly and effectively in the case that rainfall causes flooding.
Heavy rainfall began lashing down on eastern Spain on Wednesday evening and is expected to persist throughout the week.
Tourists heading to Spain’s Mediterranean shores have been urged to monitor local weather updates and follow official guidance.
The weather forecast has forced authorities in the region of Murcia to evacuate a housing estate and close schools across 13 municipalities on Friday.
President of Murcia Fernando Lopez Miras called for ‘caution’ and warned residents that ‘the worst of the storm is expected [on Friday]’.
No serious incidents have been reported, but emergency services in Murcia had to respond to an elderly person who sustained minor injuries after heavy rain caused a roof to collapse, Spanish newspaper El Pais reports.
During the early hours of Friday morning, emergency services said they carried out several water pumping operations in the Valencian municipality of Alcasser and reported some fallen trees.
Authorities are taking heightened measures as the storm comes nearly a year after widespread flooding in Valencia killed more than 200 people, Spain’s worst natural disaster in decades.
The catastrophe sparked public fury over warning systems and the emergency response.
Residents continue to protest, accusing officials of having failed to provide timely alerts.
Heavy rains lashed the region again last month, forcing the closure of schools and universities, disrupting rail and road travel and causing localised flooding.
Because a hotter atmosphere holds more water that evaporates from a rapidly warming Mediterranean Sea, climate change increases the risk and intensity of flooding from extreme rainfall in the region.
Almost 240 people died in the country after torrential rains last October triggered floods that swept through eastern and southeastern Spain.
The most severely hit area was Valencia’s southern suburbs where more than 220 people died.
